Geography

Côte d'Ivoire (also known as the Ivory
Coast), in western Africa on the Gulf of Guinea, is a little larger than
New Mexico. Its neighbors are Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, and
Ghana. The country consists of a coastal strip in the south, dense forests
in the interior, and savannas in the north.

Government

Republic.

History

Côte d'Ivoire was originally made up of
numerous isolated settlements; today it represents more than sixty
distinct tribes, including the Baoule, Bete, Senoufou, Agni, Malinke, Dan,
and Lobi. Côte d'Ivoire attracted both French and Portuguese
merchants in the 15th century who were in search of ivory and slaves.
French traders set up establishments early in the 19th century, and in
1842, the French obtained territorial concessions from local tribes,
gradually extending their influence along the coast and inland. The area
was organized as a territory in 1893, became an autonomous republic in the
French Union after World War II, and achieved independence on Aug. 7,
1960. Côte d'Ivoire formed a customs union in 1959 with Dahomey
(Benin), Niger, and Burkina Faso. The nation's economy is one of the most
developed in sub-Saharan Africa. It is the world's largest exporter of
cocoa and one of the largest exporters of coffee.

From independence until his death in 1993, Felix
Houphouët-Boigny served as president. Massive protests by students,
farmers, and professionals forced the president to legalize opposition
parties and hold the first contested presidential election in Oct. 1990,
which Houphouët-Boigny won with 81% of the vote.

Beginning in Sept. 1998, thousands of
demonstrators protested a constitutional revision that granted President
Henri Konan Bédié greatly enhanced powers.
Bédié also promoted the concept of
ivoirité,
which, roughly translated, means “pure Ivoirian pride.”
Although its defenders describe
ivoirité
as a term of
positive national pride, it has led to dangerous xenophobia, with numerous
ethnic Malians and Burkinans driven out of the country in 1999.

President Bédié was overthrown in
the country's first military coup in Dec. 1999, and Gen. Robert Guei
assumed control of the country. As a result, the majority of foreign aid
to the country ceased.